Rotary engine.



L. L. LEWIS.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLIUATION FILED APB. 27. 190s.

Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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L. L.- LEWIS.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLIOATION FILED 113.27. 190s.

Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

@mounten Wil r l n aktoznmo L. L. LEWIS.

ROTARY ENGINE. I

APPLIOATION FILED APB. 27. 190s.

912,315. Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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THE NcRRxs PETER: co., wxsm/vcrmv, n. c.

Ti Vriens* i inviti-fuite LEWIS, F TULSA, OKLAlOlilA.

Specioaton 01" Letters Patent.

'7o. 912,315. Patented Feb. 16, 1909. Application led. April 2?, 13GB. Serial No. lfi.

To allie/loom it' may concern: iiected together at their meeting ends to 3e it lniown that i, .Murs Lewis, a r ontinuous shaft tor the engine.

l v w y 1 1 1 J ren or tne ilniteo States, residing at rluisa, i`= the hollow snatt adjacent to its in the county ot Tulsa, Cllal oma, have invent d a new and use nl lilotary Engine, or' which the toll wing i a. spe ii'ication.

This invention has reference to improvements in rotary engines, and its object is to produce an engine et the reaction type, .vherein means are provided for driving the engine in either direction and to utill e more eti'ectively the steam 'diets issuing `from the rotor for driving a supplemental rotor which may he coupled up to the drive shaft in the same sense as the main rotor.

The present invention is an improvement over the engine for which LetterS-atent .-,tjL-Stdtll, were granted vto nie on yGctoher l5, 1907, and is in some respects similar to the structure ot the patente(- device although have rendered suoli structure more eliicient hy adding another rotary element receiving the impact of the steam at'ter issuing troni the prin ary rotary element so as to he driven in the opposite direction and thus oy suitahle gearing aid in imparting rotative movement to the shaft. Furthermore, the present invention comprises means for protecting the arms of the prime rotor troni the eii'ect or' air currents and also provides means whereby the speed et the engine ma i he governed and such speed may he indicated to the observer. Furthermore, provision is made for the introduction ot steam to the rotor through a hollow shaft so that it may enter at points diainetric to said shaft instead ot in the axial line thereof, as indicated in my aforesaid patent.

The invention will be best understood oy a consideration or 'the rollowi detail description talten in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part ot this specilication, in which drawings ieure l is a longitudinal vertical section through the machine with parts shown in elevation. 2 is section on the lino of Fig. l, Figs. l to (l inclusive, are detail views, F ig. "i" is a view ot the prime rotor and casing therefor, with the secondary rotor omitted, Fig, S, is a detail section a portion of the casing shown in "l, l i 9 is a perspective t condenser oi be used in connection with the iotarv eno' Referring to the drawings, there is shown a shaft consisting ot a solid member l and a hollow member 2 which may he suitably conwith the solid member carries a t which but two pairs drawings, but it will e understood that more pairs or arms may he used. These arms are closed at their outer ends and each pair is provided in the plane ot rotation with n iterations -l or 5, the perltorations l of one r being on the side opposite to the periiorations 5 oi" the other pair. lr', now, the steam he admitted to the hollow shaft and the arrangement be such that one pair ot arms 3 is in communication therewith, the steam under pressure will issue through the openings at the ends of the arms and reacting against the air will impart a rotative movement to the arms 3 in opposition to the direction or" issuing ot' the steam. When the steam is admitted to the other pair of arms then the rotor is caused to rotate in the opposite direction.

lt is desirable that the engine be self regulating, and for this purpose there is mounted upon each arm 3 a sleeve f' with its outer O edge normall7 closer to the axis of the arm 3 than is the port or opening l or therein, it being understood that there is a sleeve 6 on each arm. .Shese sleeves are each connected hy a .link to hell-crank lever 8 nouiited on a collar 9 'last on the shaft section Q., and the lever 8 is connected by a link l0 to a collar il mounted on the shaft section 2 for rotation therewith but capable ot longitudinal movement thereon. rlhe collar 11 is provided with a circumferential groove l2 engaged hy a forli i3 connected to an arm or rod la under the control ot a spring l5, and this r d la carries an indexY or pointer 16 "apable of traveling over a scale 1T. The sleeves 6 are made bulky enough so as to tend under the action ot centrifugal torce, to expand the spring l5 through the intermediconnections, when the rotor is in motion. The structure is such that after a certain critical speed has been reached each sleeve G will nieve out vai-d over the respective arm 3 against the action ot the spring l5 and so throttle to a greater or less extent the ports or openings il or 5 as the case may be. ln' this manner the speed of the rotor is governed by limiting the stream of steam or other tluid under pressure, if such he used issuing from the ports in the ends of the llO radial arms 3. By suitably graduating the l a suitable condenser like that shown in Fig.

index or scale 17 the speed of the rotor may be determined by the observer.

In order to admit steam into the hollow shaft the latter is surrounded by a sleeve 18 formed near its ends with internal annular ribs 19 whereby there is inclosed a chamber 2O entirely around the shaft, and the escape of steam through the ends of the sleeve 18 is prevented by glands 21 and suitable packing. Radial ports 22 are provided through the shaft coincident with the chamber 2() and entering this chamber 20 is a steam inlet pipe 23-with a throttle valve 24.

The arms 3 may be carried by a hub 25, and this hub carries two disks 26 one on each side of the arms 3, and except where the arms 3 project beyond the periphery of the disks they may be closed in by the peripheral connecting strip 27. By this means the arms in rotating are protected from the effects of the surrounding air, and the links 7 are also likewise protected. The hub 25 is fast on the shaft and so participates in its movement. i

The hub 25 is provided on the side coincident with the hollow shaft section 2, with a conical recess 28 andy radiating from this recess are ports or passages 29 leading into the respective arms 3. ln the structure illustrated in thel drawings there are four such passages since there are four arms shown therein.

Extending axially through the shaft section 2 there is a rod 29 terminating in a head '30, of conical shape, having a steam-tight seat in the recess 28 of the hub 25. This head 30 is'provided with two diametrically opposite passages 31, so disposed as to put either diametric pair of arms 3 in communication with the interior of the hollow shaft section 2'. By this means either pair of arms 3may receive steam and since the openings 4 and 5' point oppositely, the rotor is driven in one or the other direction according to which pair of arms receive the steam.

The rod 29 extends through a packing gland 32 at the end of the shaft section 2, and exterior thereto this rod receives a friction member 33 of any suitable type so that the rod 29 may be slowed down, and the steam passages 31 be thereby brought into coincidence with the other pair of arms 3. The rotor is thereby reversed when the friction member may be disengaged from the rod. Suitable means, such as a pin on the rod, engaging a slot in the interior wall of the shaft section 2, may be used to limit the independent rotative movement of the rod 29.

Housing the rotary member of the engine is a cylindrical casing 34 provided at any appropriate point with an exhaust conduit 35 which may communicate with the exterior of the building in which the engine may be placed,` or the steam may be passed through 9, where there is shown a sinuous pipe 36 made of thin metal with large radiating surface, and having its coils individually connected with another pipe 37 leading if desired to the water supply tank of the boiler furnishing the engine with steam. |Through one side wall of the casing 34 the collar 9 is extended and is rendered steam tight by a suitable packing gland 38, and packing ring 39. VThe other side wall of the casing is sustained upon a ournal box 40 carrying the corresponding portion of the shaft section 1, and this journal box may be mounted upon a pedestal 41. A separate view of the journal box is shown in Fig. 5 where it will be observed that it has wings 42 formedI on it for securing it to the pedestal 41. This ournal box extends into the casing and up to and against the hub 25 so as to prevent lengthwise movement of the shaft within the casing. Mounted upon the journal box 40 which is cylindrical in exterior shape is a disk or web 43 free to rotate upon the journal box and of greater diameter than the spread of the arms 3 but still contained within the casing 34. Projecting from near the periphery or the web 43 on the side adjacent to the arms 3 is a circular series of Y shaped vanes 44 each formed of a central stem 45 and divergent sides 46. rEhe stem 45 and sides 46 are in the path of the stream of steam or other compressed iiuid issuing from the ports 4 or 5, as the case may be.

Fast on the shaft section 1 exterior to the casing and beyond the journal box 40 is a bevel gear 47 meshing with a bevel pinion 48 fast on the casing and projecting to the interior thereof through a slot 49 and in turn meshing with bevel gear 50 fast on the web Then steam is allowed to issue through the ports 4 or 5, the reaction will cause the rotation of the arms 3 in a given direction, as before explained. The stream also impinges against the vanes 44 and causes a rotation of the web 43 in a direction contrary to the rotation of the arms 3, but this movement is converted into a rotation in the same sense as the shaft by means of the bevel gearing.

The shaft section 1 may be provided with a balance wheel 51 which, under some circumstances, may also be utilized as a pulley, and this shaft section l may also carry a worin 52 meshing with a worin-wheel 53 for the transfer of power from the shaft to driven machinery.

rllhe arms 3 directly secured to the shaft may be considered as the primary rotor, and the web 43 with the vanes 44 coupled to the shaft through intermediate gearing, may be considered as a supplemental rotor.

ln Fig. 7, the supplemental rotor is omit- 

